Last Kung Fu Monk (2010) User Reviews

Better Than the 70's Kung Fu Movies!

[The_BDC · 5/10 · 7 December 2014]

This is a low budget Kung Fu flick...but it's really not that bad - I've seen much worse! This movie had the typical "good guy out to avenge his family and help others along the way" kind of story...not as good as others, better than some. Some of the acting was OK...others were pretty bad and some hilarious! The story wasn't going to win any awards, but was good enough to keep me interested. The punch/kick sound effects were reminiscent of the arcade game "Mortal Kombat" and bugged me a little...but the choreography and fight scenes were done very well and sated my ninja bone. Which brings me to one thing that really bugged me...the man who wrote, directed, choreographed, and starred in this movie (Peng Li) doesn't even get top billing or proper credit! I had to search for him and his name on this page! Really? Give the guy a break!

Two sided

[kosmasp · 4/10 · 20 March 2015]

The action choreography is pretty good. Not get out of here fantastic or exceptional or whatever, but it is more than solid. And I wanted to start with this, because when the movie starts (and you haven't read what it is about), you could be excused by thinking this is a documentary. It might have worked better as one actually.

But it isn't, it is a fictional story with actors who have issues with their lines and acting in general at times. Our main hero is good at what he does action wise, but when it comes to delivering lines, you might feel weird watching this happen ... If you skip to the action scenes, you'll be good and they are the only reason I rated this that "high" ...

Potential.... but thats it.

[destroyerwod · 5/10 · 4 June 2015]

Honestly, the trailer looked cool so i rented this movie of Xbox Live. So the first thing to get in your face is the wooden and terrible acting. The main protagonist is a Shaolin Monk, so that is excusable, i was not expecting him to be a chatter box, but the rest of the cast are so awful in there line deliveries minus maybe the actress who play Sarah that is half decent, but the rest are bad... like really bad. So thats already a strike against the movie. Also there is quite a lot of character development in the first 30 minutes so a good acting would had really help and the excuse of "you don't watch a kung fu movie for acting" kinda felt flat.

What about the action? The action is very good. I dunno if this is made to be an homage to the old kung fu movies, but the sound effects really reminded me of this. The moves at time seem to not hurt hard as i would expect (Thais are really good at this) but the choreography's are very good and enjoyable.

What about the plot? That is one major question mark... If the beginning is actually pretty straight forward and easy to follow, it then become kinda weird, i want this review to remain spoiler free but you never really get to know who is the bad guy and why he is bad. Its kinda like having that generic guy in a suit for the purpose of having one.

All and all... well i enjoyed the fights, the lead "actor" showed potential and could do something pretty good under a better direction and with a better script.

If your one of those huge fans of Kung Fu movies, i would say give it a shot, but thats as far as i would recommend. Show potential... but thats it.

Worst acting ever

[icameron-723-431890 · 1/10 · 27 June 2013]

I've seen a lot of decent Kung-fu movies, however this is not one of them. If you are expecting a Jackie Chan kind of martial arts comedy, then this is not for you (even though they do have the outtakes at the end of the film). Where Jackie Chan films are generally quite humorous, the only humor in this film comes from how bad the acting is. The fight scenes are not bad, but the horrific acting cancels them out, such that you end up at the end of the film wishing you had spent the time doing something else. The main actress is quite cute, however the storyline is so far fetched as to be comical. Seriously, do not waste your time with this flick and watch a Jackie Chan movie instead. You'll be glad you did.

B movie with one really really odd thing....

[sketchatron · 2/10 · 21 September 2013]

OK, so I only saw about 15 minutes worth of this thing. It falls under the category of B movie making, so you shouldn't expect much other than some halfway decent "kung-fu like" moves. What I wanted to mention was how messed up the young social worker is. We have a young, hot looking girl in New York City who is showing the main character around the city, because, you know, he's visiting from another country. So anyway, he's obviously older, and her brain sort of works so she knows he's a monk. But somehow in the span of about a day, this hot young girl decides to get horny for this older foreign monk and tries to kiss him.......wait stop the picture....what the hell just happened? Are you telling me a hot young girl in NYC can't find one halfway decent boyfriend in a city of 8 million people to spread her legs? She's got to give it up to a visiting foreign older monk? Well that's about the most insulting thing I've ever seen in a movie. Time to leave.

Pleasant enough with good fights but kind of violent

[vchimpanzee · 18 September 2013]

At the start of the movie in China as Shaolins are trained, everything is blue. I'm not quite sure what is going on. More recent scenes are mostly blue and make no sense to me. But the quality of acting in the China scenes is higher than in the United States.

So how will it all turn out? I'll bet you already know.

The fighting is excellent, and probably the main reason to watch. There is, however, some unnecessary blood, and some innocent people get seriously hurt or killed. I should mention that I saw the acclaimed "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" the day before I saw this, but I enjoyed this movie more.

Peng Zhang Li has a pleasant personality but shows little emotion unless he is fighting. As a teacher he is very serious but kind. You have to see the outtakes, though. There he smiles a lot and even laughs. Everyone seemed to be enjoying making this movie.

Kristen Dougherty is so sweet and attractive, I'd like to see more of her and was pleased she had a large role. That's not to say she's a talented actress, but she would make a good office worker. She and her co-star had one of my favorite bloopers at the end.

Michael seemed kind of spoiled but was pleasant enough. His scenes with his uncle entertained.

Cusamano is an acquired taste. He's not automatically likable.

If you like martial arts fights, this is pretty good. If you like relationships too, this movie has that. There are better movies for both.

I'm giving it two stars for the amazing footage of the fights

[create_possibilities · 2/10 · 30 April 2018]

First let me give you the good news. The fight and training scenes are quite good as is the footage of what appears to be a real monastery and cast of dozens in training. If you're a lover of Kung Fu, you'll agree. I trained in White Crane style for years. That's where the good news ends. Bad news is the script flows as smoothly as sour milk. Acting? No. But there's Kung Fu. Often lacking any reason other than to build up to the next fight, entire scenes appear of little value to the overall movie. The screenplay is choppy, from lighting to camera angle. Dark and grainy, angle unchanged for too long, zooming in on nothing of importance. Add to that a musical score that has that old porn movie quality, volume raising suddenly for seemingly no reason, and the genre of music quite odd for this kind of movie. Reminds me of the art house flicks from the French and Italians. Dialogue is at times smooth, by mostly comical, with more than a few mumbles left in, either slipping past the director and editors, or to save film. An example of the acting is how when one character finishes a line, the other pauses a moment, awkwardly long, and suddenly bursts out with feigned energy, smiles appearing more like a grimace. Sometimes, in response to a light-hearted line, others respond with overdone laughter. Each time my attention began to wane, wonky acting and dialogue with that porn music gave me a great laugh. This movie actually reminds me of classic Kung Fu movies from earlier days, poorly dubbed and shoestring budget. The classics, of course, can be excused. Perhaps it's only artistic genius is that Last Kung Fu Monk has managed to recreate the now farcical old time feel in an effort to make a serious martial arts contender. Shoot for serious, end up at funny. Now that's comedy.

Confusing almost-kung-fu movie

[barlowgirl2003 · 3/10 · 3 March 2013]

Very confusing back-flashes.

Aside from those, the presentation of the main character as a true shaolin monk is well done. He is consummate, a true monk in the senses presented to the viewer.

The film is presented in a way that caters to the chick-flick crowd, where the actresses and characters focus on emotions and connections emanating from the main character. Unfortunately for those interested in a martial arts film, this focus takes precedence over the martial arts aspect.

For the chick-flick fans, it should be mentioned that the presentation does not serve them particularly either. The main character does show up as a true monk, not partaking in the passing pleasures of the present, but focusing on the necessities at hand.

There are a few scenes of martial artistry, but these do not make up for the lackluster performance of the film as a whole.

As others have said, pick another one to waste your time with. This master plays his part, but the war is lost.

Good background noise

[kopilot111 · 4/10 · 18 December 2016]

Spoiler: there's nothing beyond the title to indicate the protagonist is anywhere near being the last Shaolin Kung-Fu monk. There is no explanation for this just as there is hardly any apparent motivation for anything anyone in this movie does.

The characters who are supposed to be likable are. There are some OK (and IMHO, only OK) fight sequences.

As some have said, the acting is not very impressive-but considering the sophomoric screenplay it would be hard for the best actors to do anything with their lines.

If you told me this movie was the first written and directed by an aspiring 13-year-old filmmaker, I'd believe it.

Exactly What You'd Expect

[ejb57220 · 6/10 · 18 September 2011]

There are few movies that a film lover would rent without first taking into consideration the quality of the acting - Chinese martial arts films are certainly an exception to this rule. This film is a quintessential example of that caveat, turning what initially would be perceived as a poorly scripted, amateur attempt at entertainment into a rather enjoyable two hours of remarkably impressive fight sequences. Even after reading what the movie was about, I'm still not sure the plot ever actually permeates into a logical series of events. And I've seen better acting from college kids with a video camera pretending to have talent. But that's not the reason we choose to rent these kinds of flicks is it? We rent them to have a few hours viewing of ass kicking while enjoying a late night indulgence - and to this extent the movie achieves a most lovable form of quality. What the cast lacks in talent, they make up for in looks; the supporting actresses are gorgeous and the lead actor is in fine shape. The direction and editing is notably horrific. The choreography, on the other hand, is on par with most other movies of its genre. Last Monk of Kung Fu never lives up to the level that Ong Bak set (the plots have considerable correlation) but it does provide a great few hours of action and unintended laughs.

Fails to impress

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 11 July 2021]

Another cheap Hong Kong/American co-production. Set in New York, this one openly copies the likes of WARRIOR KING and ONG BAK in the tale of a Shaolin trained monk battling the bad guys. It has supremely awful acting and a lot of stylised action which fails to impress; the low budget is just too apparent here.

Way too underrated....

[euroasiangenetic · 10/10 · 19 October 2018]

One of the first Mainland of China movies that got released worldwide in 2010. Last Kung Fu Monk is a drama with kung fu about handle different situations in a different surroundings.

Meet mr Li Long, a Shaolin monk that leave his beliefs and move to America to find his brother. Instead he hear the news that his brother and his wife died in a car accident. His brother has a son though and Li volunteered to take care of him. To make money, Li befriend a Shaolin fan named Dave who tells him he can help him to open up a kung fu school. What Li doesn't know is Dave is connected with the Russian Mafia and the Russian mafia boss wants his money back for tribute the schools fundings.

When the movie came out on 1st October 2010 in the cinema I just thought this movie was just ok, and didn't even put it as a top 20 favorite. But now after 8 years since the release the movie starts to grow on me, and nowadays the cinema is filled with stereotypes hero movies and crappy CGI style, this movie has started to grow on me so much that it is on my top 5 list of my favorite movies of 2010s.

And to compare with nowadays, this movie doesn't deserve the harsh treatment as it got through the early years, this movie is it own movie, and to compare with other Chinese mainland movies, this movie is lighthearted and not much propaganda and quite a cute movie to watch.

I have raised the bar of this movie now and give it a 10/10 because it deserves it.

A Monk out of Water

[dafrosts · 7/10 · 5 November 2017]

Li is a Shaolin Monk who comes to the States to care for his nephew after his brother and sister-in-law are killed in a car accident. A noble act I grant you. The story goes off-enter from the moment Li arrives in the states. A former student, Dave, offers to open a school with Li. a great idea, as it would be income to support Li's nephew, Michael. However, after seeing how pathetically Dave fights off predators who assault Mei, a waitress at a local restaurant, I'd have serious second and third thoughts about the deal. Nonetheless, Li still opens the school. Sarah, Michael's CSW, at first has no use for Li. She even calls him pathetic when discussing him with her boss. It isn't until Li stops thieves who are cutting through their yard, the Sarah suddenly sees his value. Sarah develops serious Hero worship. She sees Mei as competition for Li's affections, though Li as a Monk, is oblivious to both women. When it comes to light that Dave got the school funding from the Russian Mob, all hell breaks loose. Li has to work a Fight Club in order to save Mei and regain control of his school. The end fights are good. It is slow at times but the action more than makes up for it.

So this is the last of the Kung Fu monks? Alrighty then...

[paul_haakonsen · 3/10 · 3 February 2016]

When I purchased this 2010 Kung Fu action movie from Amazon, I had no idea what it was, nor did I know anyone on the cast list. But being a Kung Fu movie was more than enough to catch my interest. And the fact that it was about maybe £2 or £3 with shipping, then it wasn't a massive loss if the movie was not a great one.

And now I have managed to finally get around to watch it, and I can in all honesty say that this movie was nowhere near as good or entertaining as I had hoped for. Sure, I didn't have much expectations to begin with, but this movie still managed to disappoint. And why is that? Well, because of the storyline and the lack of proper acting talent throughout the movie.

The action in "Last Kung Fu Monk" was quite good, and there was a lot of it. And it should be said that Peng Zhang Li does have some impressive martial arts skills and manages to deliver a nice display of his talent. However, his martial arts could only carry the movie so far, because his acting was downright wooden and rigid.

I managed to get somewhere near 45 minutes into the movie before I had to give up out of sheer boredom. The lack of proper acting performances were really wearing and tearing at me, and it was ultimately this which made me give up on the movie. The fighting was good, but it was hardly nowhere near enough to keep the movie afloat.

If you enjoy movies where the main character is forced into fighting in underground fighting rings, then there far better movies available. "Last Kung Fu Monk" doesn't really offer anything which haven't been seen in countless other martial arts movies in the past.

I am rating "Last Kung Fu Monk" a mere three out of ten stars rating solely for the martial arts in the movie.

Worst movie ever

[kedo88 · 1/10 · 16 July 2018]

From the dull script, barely there acting and badly written characters makes this one of the most painful movie I've ever seen. Terrible.

You can find better fighting movies out there

[jackmeat · 4/10 · 26 June 2015]

MY quick rating - 3,8/10. I suppose the fighting scenes were OK but completely unbelievable (and not in the good neat looking wire effects) but overall the story was boring. Same old Asian guy from out of town to beat up the dumb Americans thing. Could be fun but here is some of the worst acting in a long time. I have seen actors that look afraid to say their lines in front of camera, but this movie found EVERY single person afraid to say their lines. This major flaw is coupled with the worst editing possible. Think of how your home movies look and you use the fade button on your 200 dollar camera, that is what this whole movie is for any scene change. It reeks of low quality all around minus Li Zhang who obviously has been trained well. Maybe if this movie was a documentary or based on someone who went through this, it may have been a bit better off, but stand alone fiction, nope, I suggest passing on this one.

Watch this film, but only if you are a collector who must see every kung fu movie.

[thejim223 · 3/10 · 15 February 2015]

I won't mince words. This movie is bad. Bad writing, bad acting, sappy music and editing that gave me a migraine headache. But, I think the acting wouldn't have been that bad, if they had lines to deliver. A half decent script writer would have been worth his/her pay. The lead, while wooden is likable. He is clearly skilled in kung fu. But again, so many times he looks like he's asking for a line to deliver. The editing could have been done better by a 14 yr old with a macbook. It is seriously bad. Then there's the flashbacks, yikes. This is film making 101. Use flashbacks sparingly, or never. In one of the last flashbacks, we see Li kicked out of the monastery. Maybe I should have had subtitles, because there seemed to be no explanation for his removal. This and all the other flashbacks added literally nothing to the story. They were just 20 minutes of filler. So, there it is. Its not the worst movie I've ever seen. If you like kung fu and like to see the good guy kick the crap out of the bad guys, and you can tune out all non-fight scenes, then by all means, add this to your collection.

ALL YOU KNOW IS STUPID KUNG FU

[nogodnomasters · 1/10 · 25 September 2018]

Li Long (Peng Zhang Li) Not his porn name, is a Shaolin Monk that comes to the United States to care for his nephew (Major Curda) which he is inept at doing. He opens a kung-fu school and ends up having to fight a bunch of bad guys because...they want him to? Sarah (Kristen Dougherty) is a social worker who helps Li out.

I am not sure why someone would want to make a low budget fight film hoping to get it aired on Lifetime, but that is what they looked like they did. The acting was horrible. The noises in the fight sequences didn't always match the action, and at times it seemed they were injecting striking noises at random.

There didn't seem to be a climax to the film to get excited about. The plot went nowhere.

Guide: No swearing sex or nudity.

Such a Waste

[dunfincin · 5/10 · 8 January 2015]

I rather like cheaply made kung fu films but not this cheap which is a great shame because I thought the leading protagonist, (and apparently the film's director) Peng Li was actually rather good. I don't think I've seen him in another film previously which comes as quite a surprise given that he managed to secure funding (about $27) for his own debut film.

I won't go into the story too much save to say that it is a very familiar theme-good-guy beats up bullies, rescues heroine and generally saves the day. I don't know whether Peng Li is really a Shaolin trained monk but he is obviously very good at what he does. In his katas, his kicks and punches are very fast and powerful and I suspect that with properly focused chi he could do a lot of damage and that's what makes the fight scenes so unbelievable. He is punching and kicking people with no obvious martial art skills who are then bouncing off the floor as if they had been hit with a bag of marshmallows when in reality they wouldn't be getting up again for a long time.

I've seen complaints that Peng Li doesn't smile enough or indeed show very much emotion. As a rule, Chinese people don't. Comparisons have been made to Jackie Chan but possibly they don't realise that his slapstick style is just an act for his films. If Peng Li is a Shaolin Monk or if he is pretending to be one then spending three-quarters of your life living in a monastery eating three bowls of rice and fish a day when you're not meditating or fighting with someone, then I wouldn't be smiling much either. I think he plays his part believably.

This is a modern kung fu film with an accomplished leading man and it is such a shame that his skills have been largely wasted in this dire nightmare of a film and I just hope that there is someone out there who will give him another chance.

way better than how people are reviewing this

[jmigoya · 8/10 · 27 September 2012]

trust me when i say this movie with a big budget and better writers would be absolutely friggin awesome because the plot is simple enough, so for what it is and the budget it had which im sure was very small, it does wonders, the acting is terrible at times, the fighting was incredible the main actor which im sure is a shaolin monk or was picture perfect some minor use of wires maybe to acentuate the power of the strikes but other than that pure kung fu, so i cant give this movie a bad review because im a die hard kung fu fan and i don't go to see this type of movie for the acting, i give it 8/10 want to see more of the leading character, reminds me of some of jet li's earlier shaolin movies